Akhand Bharat — Natural boundary for National security

हिंदी लेख — https://sreerammenon.medium.com/अखंड-भारत-राष्ट्रीय-सुरक्षा-की-प्राकृतिक-सीमा-c6f680c3c8c1

The concept of national security is multifaceted, involving various elements that contribute to the stability and sovereignty of a nation. It’s a fundamental requirement for a country’s development and is prominently featured in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, underlying the necessity of safety before higher-order functions can be addressed.

For a nation, especially one with the complex and diverse topography of Bharat, secure borders are paramount. The strategic value of natural barriers is evident; nations that are landlocked or those with essential resources under foreign control often find their autonomy compromised. The cost of extensive military and border policing, a burden for countries with extensive perimeters like Bharat, can be unsustainable.

Historically, the natural geography of a region has significantly influenced the security and identity of its inhabitants. For the Indian subcontinent, these natural features have served not only as barriers but also as a source of collective cultural and historical identity. The entire mountain range is called Hindu kush by the people towards the west and called ‘Yin Du’ (stamp of India) by the people towards the East, signifying how the mountain is connected to the identity of India. The mighty Himalayas along with the tundra extending from it and the ocean opposite to it, have traditionally been a formidable natural fortification. A glance at the map reflecting population density distribution (Figure 1) elucidates how the Bharatiya population nestles close to these Himalayan ranges, in stark contrast to the sparse habitation on the opposite side.

Figure 1 — Countries’ population distribution around Himalaya.

It is also interesting to note that 94% of Chinese population live far away from Himalaya in a small piece of land while most of the western China situated on and around Himalayas are sparsely populated.

Historical Incursions and the Call for Vigilance

Despite the Himalayas’ protective embrace, the past 500 years have witnessed incursions, notably not from the Arabian peninsula, but from within the Himalayan range itself. The attacks and the subsequent effective 200 years of Mughal rule came from immediate neighbours and places within this Himalayan range of Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. It points to a significant lesson: Strategic control over these highlands (Figure 2) has always been essential; mere possession of select peaks is insufficient for long-term security, as the broader control of the range is crucial for safeguarding the plains below.

Figure 2 — Himalaya with elevations

The Himalayan range itself has rivers nourishing regions beyond, including countries in Central Asia, China, Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia in addition to India (Figure 3). This also places strategic importance to this peak.

Figure 3 — Himalaya with river basins

Envisioning the Natural Boundaries of Bharat

This leads to a consideration of what the boundaries of Bharat could be if they fully leveraged the natural borders provided by the Himalayas and the surrounding geography. If Bharat were to extend to its natural borders, the contours would trace through territories currently divided among several countries (Figure 4).

Figure 4 — Territory control map showing the countries overlayed on Himalayas

Such a boundary would encompass regions currently part of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tibet, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and certain Chinese provinces like Qinghai, Sichuan, and Yunnan (Figure 5).

Tibet and Qinghai are part of the Tibetan Plateau, and there is no clear natural boundary between them because the plateau extends across both areas. They are interconnected with vast high-altitude grasslands and mountain ranges. Hence, any boundary drawn needs to include Qinghai as part of Akhand Bharat. In the case of Sichuan and Yunnan, The eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau serves as a natural boundary, with the rugged terrain of the Hengduan Mountains marking the transition from the high plateau of Tibet to the Sichuan Basin and Yunnan.

Figure 5 — Image of China with provinces (imperfectly) overlayed of Himalaya map

While present India has an open border with Nepal and Bhutan and a calm border with Sri Lanka, the borders with Pakistan, Tibet (China), and Bangladesh poses issues for the government due to a combination of porous border, high population, incompatible culture, and aggression.

When we take the image of Akhand Bharat presented, Nepal and Bhutan will be within the geography of this larger territory envisioned. Sri Lanka can be considered to be a part of this territory as it is linked via the Ram Setu.

In case of Bangladesh, west of Bangladesh does not have a clear geographic boundary with India, especially when it comes to Rangpur and Rajshahi. Dhaka, Sylhet, and Chithagong is isolated from this region due to water on one side (Figure 6) and Himalayas on the other. It seems like the current boundary division was not done basis the natural boundaries for both the countries.

Figure 6 — Map of Bangladesh

While the Himalayas provide us most of the natural security in the borders, there are some tiny gaps that lets interactions take place comfortably with the external world through land-routes. These gaps are towards Iran on the west and towards Thailand on the east. The west one needs to be manned the traditional way while the east one gives us three options. These three options are due to 3 rivers than can act as natural boundary; Irrawaddy, Salween, and Mekong. Irrawaddy and Salween both flow witin Myanmar while Mekong gives water to Laos & Cambodia, and exits through a tiny portion in Vietnam. The rivers Salween and Mekong forms boundaries at many places for Thailand.

Figure 7 — Map showing the rivers flowing in Indochinese Peninsula

Myanmar forms natural part of the boundary if we truly needs to have a secure boundary to all the sides. This is also why Myanmar formed part of the territory in British India. Having Thailand and Laos or Vietnam as neighbours are advantageous to us, due to the trade and culture. Cambodia even hosts the largest Hindu temple complex, an ancient temple known as Angkor Wat. If we are taking Mekong water as the border wherein Thailand (and West Cambodia, and a small portion of Vietnam) joins this association, it will give us a better trade advantage by opening up sea routes to Indonesia and beyond. Although mainland China (where the majority population lives) starts right after Vietnam, there will be less aggression on this area as such an act will be costly for the Chinese side due to the population’s nearness.

Continuing on the subject of neighbours to this new region, positioning Iran as a neighbour on the western frontier would likely bolster regional stability, given its interest in maintaining a balance of power as a Shia nation among predominantly Sunni states. Iran, with a population of 8 crores and common history with the continent, can also optionally join this association as Iran itself is protected from other countries due to natural boundaries (Caspian Sea, Aras River, Zagros Mountains, Hindu Kush, and Persian Gulf). This will also give the new region direct trading routes to middle east and Europe (Russia) through sea routes and most importantly, provide energy security due to Iran’s oil rigs.

The other set of neighbours we will have would be Central Asian countries with relatively low population (8 crores collectively, similar to Iran) compared to the subcontinent (200 crores collectively), which suggests a balance more conducive to regional stability. Hence, while Akhand Bharat will bring in new set of neighbours to India, they can be expected to give more regional stability and security than the current ones we have.

The region hence formed, referred to as Akhand Bharat in this article, can also potentially engage with Europe and East Asian countries through direct trade routes. The region also delineates an area distinct in its spiritual practices. The entirety of region (including Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand) even consists of a different Buddhism from the rest of the world, with the exception of Mongolia. This region has predominantly Vajrayana or Theravada Buddhism (referred to as Hinayana, a derogatory term, by practitioners of Mahayana), as opposed to the Mahayana Buddhism prevalent in regions farther away.

The final territory of Akhand Bharat includes the following territories:

1. India
2. Pakistan
3. Afghanistan (upper portion)
4. Tibet
5. Qinghai, Sichuan, and Yunnan of China
6. Nepal
7. Bhutan
8. Bangladesh
9. Myanmar (left portion until Salween)
10. Sri Lanka

These 10 territories joined together will look something like the below map (Figure 8).

Figure 8 — Territory of Akhand Bharat (minimum)

One key thing that we can note here is that, currently, all the members of this group (except the Chinese provinces) are unable to trade freely and effectively.

Nepal & Bhutan are landlocked and are unable to trade freely now.
Tibet has no freedom and China may not be their best partner.
Bangladesh is also locked between countries and has no effective land routes for trade.
Afghanistan has literally no trade happening due to the border problems and being landlocked.
The case is similar for Pakistan, which is economically doing terribly. Myanmar and Sri Lanka too does not seem to be doing well in terms of economic performance. Both of these countries are unable to leverage the growth and potential of India.
Finally, India is also not an exception as it has no effective land trade routes now which limits its GDP growth potential.

Combined entity of Akhand Bharat will get much better land routes for trade, potentially opening up trade with Europe through Central Asia and with East Asian countries from Myanmar.

As this is a natural concept for national security, the concept for this new territory has been alive for a long time, and there is also a day (14th August) dedicated as Akhand Bharat Sankalp Diwas. A common map which gets circulated is shown below.

Figure 9 — Map showing territories that form part of Akhand Bharat and when they were a part of historic Bharat in the latest period.

Note: The above image is not an endorsement of any political action.

Demographic implications of this new region

As per 2022–2023 data, India has approximately 30,00,000 km2 of landmass, GDP of 3.5 trillions, population of around 150 crores, wherein 77% is Hindu, 15% is Islam, and 1% is Buddhist.

The data for the countries involved in Akhand Bharat is given below as a table (Table 1).

Table 1 — data related to landmass, population, GDP, and demographic for the nations involved in Akhand Bharat

The envisioned ‘Akhand Bharat,’ expanding beyond present-day India’s borders, would cover a land area 2.5 times larger, housing more than 200 crore people, which accounts for a quarter of the global population. The majority religious demographics would shift, with Hindus constituting around 60% and Muslims around 30%.

For the readers who are interested to see the data after keeping Sichuan and Yunnan of China separate from this region due to population and GDP, then following (Table 2) will be the final stats of Akhand Bharat.

Table 2— Akhand Bharat data without Sichuan and Yunnan

Though the new region is still approximately 2.5 times the size of India with similar demographics, it will still only be 7th largest country in the world, being still behind Australia (76,92,024) and China (76,65,659 after territory reduction) by a small margin.

We can see that the majority of GDP (75%) and population (71%) are driven by India while the landmass is more uniformly distributed. The economic landscape hence, necessitates concerted efforts from India to bolster its economic performance to serve as an anchor for the region’s prosperity.

Ensuring the security of this expansive territory would bring new challenges but also opportunities for peace and economic growth on India’s terms. However, this vision does not advocate for forced annexation or even discuss the possibilities for such a European Union like set-up. Rather, it discusses what the ideal boundary looks like and acknowledges the complexities such a vast demographic amalgamation would entail.

The article thus concludes by noting that having Akhand Bharat as a territory will do wonders for the national security. It not only brings great defences to territorial aggression but also brings in new set of neighbours which will be more conductive towards peace and trade. As a prelude to any natural coalition within the subcontinent, India, as the largest country within this region, must elevate its own economic standing .

• Note: This theoretical discussion is rooted in a strategic and geopolitical analysis. The purpose is purely analytical, examining the implications of geography on national security.
• References — Wikipedia, CIA factsheet, world bank open data, worldometer. Maps from multiple sources or created out of existing maps.